Applying More Integrative Potentials for IDS Program Planning and Development

"The continuing development and success of IDS (Interdisciplinary Studies) programs in higher education depend on the quality of processes associated with their planning, implementation, and review. Underlying and often taken-for-granted assumptions influencing IDSplanning processes are important to uncover and critically examine in dialogues involving IDS and institutional stakeholders. Potential integrating approaches and methods for IDS planning initiatives are explored, based on the author’s background in the applied social sciences and the fields of management and organization studies. These integrative potentials from the fields of strategic management and organizational development/change should empower more stakeholder voices and create alternative forms of dialogical inquiry to fit particular institutional cultures. Challenges remain for faculty and administrators in recognizing these integrative approaches and having facilitative resources to increase their potential for success."